This retrospective study investigated the relationship between self-reports and caregiver perceptions of patients’ depressive symptoms and the respective ability of these reports to predict instrumental activities of daily living (IADLs) beyond what is accounted for by cognitive abilities in 71 patients with mild Alzheimer disease. Patients completed the Geriatric Depression Scale-Short Form, and caregivers completed the Behavior Rating Scale for Dementia assessing their perception of patients’ depressive symptoms. Caregivers also completed IADL items from the Alzheimer’s Disease Cooperative Study Activities of Daily Living Inventory. Cognitive measures included the Mini-Mental State Examination, Logical Memory from the Wechsler Memory Scale III, and Trail Making Test, Part B. The relationship between self-reported depressive symptoms and caregiver report of patients’ depressive symptoms showed a trend toward significance (r = .22, P = .06). Measures of depressive symptoms significantly predicted 12.5% of the variance in IADLs performance, beyond that accounted for by patient demographics and cognitive functioning. Interestingly, patients’ reports, rather than caregivers’, were particularly useful in this prediction.
EvansDAFunkensteinHHAlbertMS. Prevalence of Alzheimer’s disease in a community population of older persons higher than previously reported. JAMA. 1987;262(18):2551–2556.
2.
BotwinickJStorandtMBergL. A longitudinal, behavioral study of senile dementia of the Alzheimer’s type. Arch Neurol. 1986;43(11):1124–1127.
3.
CorkinS. Some relationships between global amnesia and the memory impairments in Alzheimer’s disease. In CorkinSDavisKLGrowdenJH, eds. Alzheimer’s Disease: A Report of Progress in Research. New York: Raven Press; 1982:149–164.
4.
CutlerNRHaxbyJVDuaraR. Brain metabolism as measured by positron emission tomography: serial assessment in a patient with familial Alzheimer’s disease. Neurology. 1985;35(11):1556–1561.
5.
BuxbaumLJSchwartzMFMontgomeryJ. Ideational apraxia and naturalistic action. Cog Neuropsychol. 1998;15(6-8):617–643.
SchwartzMFMontgomeryMWBuxbaumLJ. Naturalistic action impairment in closed head injury. Neuropsychol. 1998;12(1):13–28.
8.
SchwartzMFBuxbaumLJMontgomeryMW. Naturalistic action production following right hemisphere stroke. Neuropsychologia. 1999;37(1):51–66.
9.
RyanKAWeldonAHubyNM. Caregiver support service needs for patients with mild cognitive impairment and Alzheimer’s disease. Alzheimers Dis Assoc Disord. 2010;24(2):171–176.
10.
RyanKAWeldonAPersadCHeidebrinkJLBarbasNGiordaniB. Neuropsychiatric symptoms and executive functioning in patients with mild cognitive impairment: relationship to caregiver burden. Dement Geriatr Cogn Disord. 2012;34(3-4):206–215.
11.
HauptMKurzAGreifenhagenA. Depression in Alzheimer’s disease: phenomological features and association with severity and progression of cognitive and functional impairment. Int J Geriatr Psychiatry. 1995;10(6):469–476.
12.
ChenJCBorsonSScanlanJM. Stage-specific prevalence of behavioral symptoms in Alzheimer’s disease in a multi-ethnic community sample. Am J Geriatr Psychiatry. 2000;8(2):123–133.
13.
MigliorelliRTesonASabeLPetracchiMLeiguardaRStarksteinSE. Prevalence and correlates of dysthymia and major depression among patients with Alzheimer’s disease. Am J Psychiatry. 1995;152(1):37–44.
14.
TeriLReiflerBV. Depression and dementia. In CarstensenLEdelsteinB, eds. Handbook of Clinical Gerontology. Elmsford, NY: Pergamon Press; 1986:112–119.
15.
AlexopoulosGSBuckwalterKOlinJMartinezRWainscottCKrishnanKR. Comorbidity of late-life depression: an opportunity for research on mechanisms and treatment. Biol Psychiatry. 2002;52(6):543–558.
16.
BruceML. Psychosocial risk factors for depressive disorders in late life. Biol Psychiatry. 2002;52(3):175–184.
17.
KennedyGJ. The dynamics of depression and disability. Am J Geriatr Psychiatry. 2001;9(2):99–101.
18.
LenzeEJRogersJCMartireLM. The association of late-life depression and anxiety with physical disability: a review of the literature and prospectus for future research. Am J Geriatr Psychiatry. 2001;9(2):113–135.
19.
ReynoldsCFAlexopoulosGSKatzIRLebowitzBD. Chronic depression in the elderly: approaches for prevention. Drugs and Aging. 2001;18(7):507–514.
20.
SaitoHIchikawaKNomiyamaT. Changes in activities of daily living during treatment of late-life depression. Psychogeriatrics. 2007;8(1):12–18.
21.
Cahn-WeinerDAMalloyPFBoylePAMarranMSallowayS. Prediction of functional status from neuropsychological tests in community dwelling elderly individuals. Clin Neuropsychol. 2000;14(2):187–195.
22.
KiossesDNKlimstraSMurphyCAlexopoulosGS. Executive dysfunction and disability in elderly patients with major depression. Am J Geriatr Psychiatry. 2001;9(3):269–274.
23.
SteffensDCHaysJCKrishnanKR. Disability in geriatric depression. Am J Geriatr Psychiatry. 1999;7(1):34–40.
24.
TeriLWagnerA. Alzheimer’s disease and depression. J Consult Clin Psychol. 1992;60(3):379–391.
25.
EspirituDAVRashidHMastBTFitzgeraldJSteinbergJLichtenbergPA. Depression, cognitive impairment and function in Alzheimer’s disease. Int J Geriatr Psychiatry. 2001;16(11):1098–1103.
26.
KiossesDNAlexopoulosGS. IADL functions, cognitive deficits, and severity of depression: a preliminary study. Am J Geriatr Psychiatry. 2005;13(3):244–249.
27.
LopezOLBollerFBeckerJTMillerMReynoldsCFIII. Alzheimer’s disease and depression: neuropsychological impairment and progression of the illness. Am J Psychiatry. 1990;147(7):855–860.
28.
MoyeJRobinerWNMackenzieTB. Depression in Alzheimer patients: discrepancies between patient and caregiver reports. Alzheimer Dis Assoc Disord. 1993;7(4):187–201.
29.
NovellaJLJochumCJollyD. Agreement between patients’ and proxies’ reports of quality of life in Alzheimer’s disease. Qual Life Res. 2001;10(5):443–452.
30.
TeriLWagnerAW. Assessment of depression in patients with Alzheimer’s disease: concordance among informants. Psychol Aging. 1991;6(2):280–285.
31.
MackenzieTBRobinerWNKnopmanDS. Differences between patient and family assessments of depression in Alzheimer’s disease. Am J Psychiatry. 1989;146:1174–1178.
32.
McKhannGDrachmanDFolsteinMKatzmanRPriceDStadlanEM. Clinical diagnosis of Alzheimer’s disease: report of the NINCDS-ADRDA Work Group under the auspices of Department of Health and Human Services Task Force on Alzheimer’s Disease. Neurology. 1984;34(7):939–944.
33.
MorrisJWeintraubSChuiHC. The Uniform Data Set (UDS): clinical and cognitive variables and descriptive data from Alzheimer disease centers. Alzheimer Dis Assoc Disord. 2006;20(4):210–216.
34.
MackJLPattersonMBTariotPN. Behavior rating scale for dementia: development of test scales and presentation of data for 555 individuals with Alzheimer’s disease. J Geriatr Psychiatry Neurol. 1999;12(4):211–223.
35.
GalaskoDBennettDSanoM. An inventory to assess activities of daily living for clinical trials in Alzheimer’s disease. The Alzheimer’s Disease Cooperative Study. Alzheimer Dis Assoc Disord. 1997;11(suppl 2):S33–S39.
36.
FolsteinMFFolsteinSEMcHughPR. “Mini-mental state.” A practical method for grading the cognitive state of patients for the clinician. J Psychiatr Res. 1975;12(3):189–198.
37.
LezakMD. Neuropsychological Assessment. 3rd ed. New York: Oxford Press; 1995.
YeudallLTReddenJRGillDMStefanykWO. Normative data for the Halstead-Reitan neuropsychological tests stratified by age and sex. J Clin Psychol. 1987;43(3):346–367.
40.
SheikhJIYesavageJA. Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS): recent evidence and development of a shorter version. In: BrinkTL eds. Clinical Gerontology: A Guide to Assessment and Intervention. New York: The Haworth Press; 1986: 165–173.
41.
Müller-ThomsenTArltSMannUMaßRGanzerS. Detecting depression in Alzheimer’s disease: evaluation of four different scales. Arch Clin Neuropsychol. 2005;20(2):271–276.
BalsisSCullyJA. Comparing depression diagnostic symptoms across younger and older adults. Aging Ment Health. 2008;12(6):800–806.
44.
HoeJKatonaCOrrellM. Quality of life in dementia: care recipient and caregiver perceptions of quality of life in dementia: the LASER-AD study. Int J Geriatr Psychiatry. 2007;22(10):1031–1036.
45.
ReadyREOttBRGraceJ. Patient versus informant perspectives of quality of life in mild cognitive impairment and Alzheimer’s disease. Int J Geriatr Psychiatry. 2004;19(3):256–265.
